On the TV is a grainy picture of the Supreme Court justices. Innocently canoodling on the couch watching are Bert and Ernie, a pair widely assumed to be gay despite Sesame Street’s statement to the contrary.

“As prejudice against gays and lesbians fades, more of these ambiguously gay couples will declare themselves,” Thomas writes. “But that doesn’t mean that every pair of cohabiting friends is madly making out on a nightly basis.”

OK, so maybe they’re just two dudes hugging. Fair enough.

Tweeps took to blasting the magazine, calling the cover design “conveniently cheap and cloying,” accusing it of “pandering to memes” and reminding everyone that the publication’s “primary goal is to sell copies of a magazine” (well, yeah).

The artist says his intention was to capture a calm kind of happiness.

Jack Hunter, who designed the cover titled “Moment of Joy” originally submitted the piece unsolicited to a Tumblr called “Blown Cover.”

“It’s amazing to witness how attitudes on gay rights have evolved in my lifetime,” Hunter tells the New Yorker. “This is great for our kids, a moment we can all celebrate.”